Can I Run Long Distance And Still Build Muscle?

I started running a month or two ago. I've done a couple 5K’s, have an 8K next month and hope to build to a 10K very soon. I'd like to eventually run a half-marathon. My question is—is it possible to build muscle while running long distances? I’ve lost some of the muscle I built from weight lifting now that I’m more focused on running. How can I have the best of both worlds?

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Thanks, Nick

Nick-

This is a great question and one that many runners are interested in. The short answer is yes, it is possible to build muscle while running; however, there are definitely qualifiers attached to my 'yes', like how much running are we talking about?

Compare a picture of a sprinter and a marathoner and it's easy to see that distance running does not lend itself to muscle building; however, most of us are not elite athletes logging upwards of 80 miles a week. The key to achieving your goal of building muscle while also running, will be finding a balance between running, weight training, and nutrition. And, the correct balance will be dependent upon your specific goals. Research does indicate that running appears to impair the muscles' ability to adapt to strength training to some degree but conversely, weight training appears to improve running performance.

If, as you state, your goals are running 5K's and 10K's and then eventually a half-marathon, your weekly mileage will probably be in the range of 25 to 35 miles a week. This mileage should allow you to maintain and even build some muscle mass as long as your nutrition is meeting the demand. On the other hand, if your goal is primarily developing muscle mass, running will need to play minimal role in your overall training plan.

Besides training and nutrition, there are also others factors to consider. Weight training causes muscles to enlarge by increasing the number of myofilaments. This enlargement is referred to as hypertrophy, or muscle growth. How much hypertrophy occurs depends upon the type of weight training, age of the athlete, nutrition, mileage, and, of course, the big one is genetics. At the end of the day, it always comes back to genetics! As Sam Mussabini tells Harold Abrahams in the running movie, Chariots of Fire, "You can't put in what God's left out." Some runners will be able to bulk up, while others will struggle... regardless of their mileage.

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First, establish your priorities. Decide what is most important to you. Then, set your goals for running and for weight training based on those priorities. Once your goals are in place, build your training plan from there. Next comes nutrition. Tracking calories, carbohydrates, and protein intake will be absolutely necessary. You may want to even consider working with a nutritionist or a registered dietician to be sure your intake is adequate for your two disciplines. The higher the mileage, the more difficult increasing muscle mass will become and the bigger role nutrition will play.

Weight training can benefit all runners in many ways, like improving muscular strength and endurance, reducing the loss of bone mineral content, balancing opposing muscle groups, reducing injuries, and even improving running performance. Weight training uses concentric (shortening) and eccentric (lengthening) contractions for movement of a joint. For example, the leg press uses a concentric contraction of the quadriceps when the weight is pushed away from the body, and the eccentric type of muscle contraction when the weight is resisted on the return. Researchers believe it is the eccentric phase of movement (aka "negatives") that reduces the risk of running injuries as well as enhances running performance.

Plan your weight training program in similar fashion to your running program, by that I mean know exactly what to do each day. Follow a strength routine using fewer sets and repetitions and higher weights for increasing muscle mass. Also, timing your weight training with your running will be important for achieving your goals. I would suggest you try running in the morning and weight train in the afternoon on the same day and then take a recovery day. Recovery days will be essential for your success. Remember, recovery days are when your body makes repairs and adaptations to become stronger, fitter, and faster!

All the best!

Susan Paul, MS

Susan Paul has coached more than 2,000 runners and is an exercise physiologist and program director for the Orlando Track Shack Foundation. For more information, visit www.trackshack.com.

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